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arXiv · 1412.7405

Light Sterile Neutrinos and Inflationary Freedom

S. Gariazzo·C. Giunti·M. Laveder
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Abstract

We perform a cosmological analysis in which we allow the primordial power spectrum of scalar perturbations to assume a shape that is different from the usual power-law predicted by the simplest models of cosmological inflation. We parameterize the free primordial power spectrum with a "piecewise cubic Hermite interpolating polynomial" (PCHIP). We consider a 3+1 neutrino mixing model with a sterile neutrino having a mass at the eV scale, which can explain the anomalies observed in short-baseline neutrino oscillation experiments. We find that the freedom of the primordial power spectrum allows to reconcile the cosmological data with a fully thermalized sterile neutrino in the early Universe. Moreover, the cosmological analysis gives us some information on the shape of the primordial power spectrum, which presents a feature around the wavenumber $k=0.002\,\text{Mpc}^{-1}$.

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S. Gariazzo, C. Giunti, M. Laveder. 2015-02-18. Light Sterile Neutrinos and Inflationary Freedom. https://doi.org/10.1088/1475-7516%2F2015%2F04%2F023

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